Need help with a 5 yr olds eczema!

My cousin has been asking me for advice on how to treat/heal her 5 year old daughter's eczema. The doctors have her on something called 'Mometasone'. Her mom tries not to use it very often, only when she really needs to control an outbreak. I searched around the forum and saw some people suggesting dandelion as a remedy. Has anyone tried this? I told her that her eczema could be aggravated by gluten, milk products, processed sugars, and possibly nightshades. Should her daughter do an elimination diet in order to figure out which specific foods are causing her skin issues? How should she go about doing this? The family is not vegetarian however they eat a lot of whole fresh foods and not much meat. Any advice would be great! Makes me sad to see my little cousin so uncomfortable. Thanks guys!

Replies to This Discussion

My kids and me have always been wheat and dairy sensitive, getting eczema when eating these foods. After eliminating these foods eczema is gone completely. Because of this I would suggest they cut out these first.

Anything the doctors prescribe will only suppress the inflammation and irritation but won't address the root and cause of the eczema.

Maybe also suggesting a fruit meal first thing in the morning and a low fat diet. Sometimes when suggesting something to parents about their kids it helps to say something like, "Some people have had success doing this..." keeping it in their ballcourt. Sounds like they are already on their way to improving their family's diet, you could help them along with a next step, good luck!

Like Mary said, meds aren't fixing the problem which means they'll need to keep treating it. Look up long-term use of corticosteroids (such as the one you mentioned). You do not want to be starting a little kid down that road. Years ago, when I cut dairy out of my diet my eczema got way better, but it didn't completely go away until I cut out wheat as well.

They dry the skin, which doesn't help. And a lot of products cause the skin to absorb more of what's put on it, which would be bad news as far as putting steroids on after bathtime goes. I'd already stopped using most products before I cut out wheat and dairy, so I never looked into them, though.